Abstract
Summary
1. Ethinyl estradiol in doses of 0.1 and 0.5 mg daily by mouth caused marked elevations in plasma 17-hydroxycorticosteroid levels in 18 post-menopausal and castrate females and in 2 patients whose hypopituitarism was associated with only moderate decreases in adrenocortical secretory capacity. 2. No increases in plasma 17-OHCS levels during ethinyl estradiol therapy were found in a male Addisonian and in a patient with a pituitary tumor and marked secondary adrenocortical insufficiency. 3. Elevations in plasma 17-OHCS were accompanied by augmented responsiveness to a standard ACTH infusion in all 10 of the post-menopausal females studied and in 1 of 2 patients with hypopituitarism. 4. A marked delay in rate of plasma clearance of infused hydrocortisone was present in all 4 of the ethinyl estradiol treated patients so tested. 5. The data suggest that ethinyl estradiol causes an alteration in hydrocortisone metabolism.
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